DWD's Reviews

Easily the best biography I read this year. Published in 2011 by Regnery History. Bully! The Life and Times of Theodore Roosevelt is exactly the kind of book that will ensure that printed books will always have a place, no matter how many e-readers are sold. This is an absolutely beautiful book. It has a satisfying heft, it is printed on high quality paper (think coffee table book quality) and is chock full of political cartoons from an era when many political cartoons would have been full color and the size of an entire newspaper page. This book inspires the reader to flip through the pages, browse a bit, admire the art and do a little reading. A larger, better reproduction of this cartoon appears in the book.  I included it as a sample of the beautiful artwork . Fortunately, Rick Marschall's text is every bit as accessible and enjoyable as the cartoons he has chosen to illustrate the hyperactive, hyper-productive, hyper-successful life of Theodore Roosevelt, the 26t

A readable but uninspired thriller Did you ever read a book that was more interesting for the places that the characters went than it was for the characters themselves? Well, this book is one of those. Not that this is a bad book - it starts with an interesting underlying plot involving a Bernie Madoff type of ponzi scheme and a hint that the government had worked to keep the scheme going long after it should have been discovered. Bring in contract killers, terrorist connections, a dying former mobster in the witness protection program, cell phones infected with GPS tracking viruses, a love story gone bad (but maybe on the rebound?), secret identities, a mathematical genius and a cub scout leader and you would think that you would have the makings of a fine thriller. Instead, the book just cruises on autopilot. The characters feel a bit shallow. The story bounds from one twist and turn to another but they just felt a bit forced. Once again, not a bad book - just not a great

The first of a prolific series My 11 year old daughter picked up Redwall at a local bookstore and loved it so I decided to give it a try, figuring that it must be pretty solid considering that there are more than 2 dozen books in the series, including prequels and other side stories. But, I was not captivated by the story. I did not dislike it, but the grown up in me had some questions that pestered me throughout. The storyline is fairly simple - the peaceful community of animals that lives in and around the Abbey of Redwall is under attack by an army led by an evil one-eyed rat named Cluny the Scourge. The scholars of the Abbey believe that the sword of their ancient hero, Martin the Warrior, will help in the defense and dispatch an initiate into their order (Matthias) to find that sword. The plot follows the progress of he siege and Matthias' search. I was bothered by many things in this book that caused me to enjoy it less than my non-critical daughter. 1) Why do the

A refreshing perspective on the Founding Fathers Published 2011 by Regnery History I am an avid reader of American history and one of my favorite areas to study is the American Revolution and the Founding Fathers. There is no shortage of books about the build up to the Declaration of Independence, the Revolutionary War and Washington, Jefferson and Adams (as of late) but there is a real scarcity of books about the difficulties experienced by the Articles of Confederation government and the debates that led to the creation of the Constitution. Of course, there are the famed Federalist Papers and the lesser-known Anti-Federalist Papers but not much written as a study. James Madison (1751-1836) In Founding Rivals , DeRose tells the story as a parallel biography of Madison and Monroe - two Founding Fathers, two future presidents, both close friends of Thomas Jefferson. This is more than a bare bones biography but there were times that I found myself wanting more such as when

An interesting "What if...?" take on the story of Jesus. Published in 2003 by Navpress This may be the most pointless review I have ever written. There is something sad about a stillborn trilogy. In this case, only the first book was published, although co-author Ross Lawhead claims the 2nd and 3rd books are written in his blog. So, this reminds of an unfinished building - lots of big plans but someone pulled the plug before it was completed. Nonetheless, here is the review: Stephen R. Lawhead The premise is simple. What if Jesus did not come into the world about 2,000 years ago, but instead was born in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in the here and now. As a history teacher I very much enjoyed reading the alternate history aspect of this book - how would the world be different if Christianity did not eclipse the old religions of Europe? Would the worship of Jupiter, Thor and Diana have continued? Would Europe have developed the same sort of political structures? The

Delivers what it promises - tension, thrills and escapism Published 2007 by Bantam Linwood Barclay has quickly become one of my favorite authors. His books feature a happy family in which some event intrudes into their lives and turns everything upside down, very much like the classic black and white noire movies where the regular guy gets pulled into a seedy underworld that he had no idea even existed.  Note, these books are not deep, they are not fine literature in any sense. But, they drag you in and make you read right through to the end and the story is well worth the price of the book. Linwood Barclay No Time for Goodbye is no different. The story is about Cynthia and Terry Archer. They have one daughter. He's a high school teacher. She works in a women's clothing store. They are a happy couple except for one dark moment twenty-five years before when Cynthia was 14 years old. One day she woke up and her entire family was gone - her mom, her dad and her bro

An interesting, well-written biography Published: 2011 by Thomas Nelson I've read several of the biographies in Thomas Nelson's "The Generals" series and found Pershing: Commander of the Great War to be the best of the bunch so far. The book is well-written, flows nicely and really gives the reader a feel for the bristly personality of "Black Jack" Pershing. Perry introduces us to Pershing, a man who wanted to be a teacher, maybe a lawyer,  but accepted an appointment to West Point because he could not afford to pay for school himself. Pershing was not particularly interesting in being a soldier, but found that the lifestyle suited him. Pershing's early service in Cuba during the Spanish-American War taught him plenty of lessons about the need for proper supply lines that he took with when he commanded the American army in Europe in World War I. World War I General  John J. "Black Jack" Pershing Pershing also served as an obser

Surprised and impressed! Performed by Johnny Heller Duration: 11 hours, 15 minutes Published 2011 by Hyperion Audio I freely admit that when I got this audiobook I was not expecting much. The premise behind the whole series is an inside joke to begin with since this is supposed to be the books written by an author in the fictional television series Castle . So, I am reading about a fictional character in the books of a fictional author based upon the life of another fictional character in a TV show. It pretty much hurts my brain to think about it - like an Escher painting gone bad. So, I got the audiobook and figured that, if nothing else, this could be good for a laugh. My original instincts were reinforced when I noted that the main character is named Nikki Heat (like a character in a bad 80's Stallone movie or something) and, of course, she is physically stunning as well as being the best detective in her squad. Actor Nathan Fillion as fictional  author Richard C

A Classic Set in 1871 and written in 1912, Zane Grey's Riders of the Purple Sage is a classic, perhaps THE classic of the Western genre. The plot is a little more complicated than most Westerns - it features two concurrent stories. Jane Withersteen is a wealthy Mormon with no husband. Her local church leader (an Elder) wants to marry her, in fact has all but ordered her to do so even though she has no interest in him. Tull orchestrates a plot to have the local Mormons shun her as much as possible (including not working for her) and not help her as rustlers steal entire herds of cattle that are no longer tended. Zane Grey (1872-1939) In the meantime, a stranger named Lassiter arrives. He has a reputation as a Mormon-hater and a gunslinger and becomes a defender of Jane Withersteen. Meanwhile, one of her last employees (Venters) goes after a herd of cattle that is being rustled and discovers a secret pass and a secret valley that they have been using. The story splits at

A Fascinating Investigation into American History Published 2008 by National Geographic Scott Reynolds Nelson went on a search to see if there was a real John Henry that inspired the songs and the legend of the man with the hammer who beat the steam drill in a contest. First and foremost, this is a book written for children, but it was interesting to this grown up as well. The topic was interesting, the pictures are great - lots of real pictures from the past of men on railroad work crews with their equipment. Nelson goes on to explain how the songs were used by work crews not just for entertainment but to keep time while moving tracks and pounding on spikes. Lastly, he explains, step-by-step how he makes his investigation. This could have been extraordinarily boring, but Nelson keeps it interesting. He actually creates a sense of tension as he tracks down his information. John Henry statue near Talcott, West Virginia Nelson does come up with a potential source of the legen

Entertaining and an artistic homage Published by Knopf, 2008 Illustrated by Ross MacDonald Boys of Steel tells the story of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the two painfully shy teenagers from Cleveland who created Superman. The two met in school and discovered a common interest in science fiction and fantastic tales. One wrote stories, the other drew. Together they created story after story that never sold. Eventually created Superman and, believe it or not, no one wanted Superman either for three years. Nobleman tells about their eventual success and their ongoing struggles with DC Comics. He tells the story well but the real star is the art of Ross MacDonald. He has illustrated the entire story in the style of those early Superman comic books and the art just leaps off of the over-sized pages. My eleven year old daughter read it and enjoyed, but probably not as much as me. This one was a winner. I rate this book 5 stars out of 5. This book can be found on Amazon.com

Not as good as the last one Published by Knopf, July of 2011 Michael Harvey's Chicago-based series features Michael Kelly, a one-time cop turned private detective who seems to have connections all over Chicago, from the Mayor's office all the way down to the street gangs. We All Fall Down takes place immediately after the previous book, The Third Rail (which I rated 4 stars out of 5) with very little explanation to get the reader up to speed. I just barely remembered the ending of the last book - I read more than a year and a half ago. Michael Kelly finds out about a conspiracy to defraud the government of Chicago led by Mafia types and a top man in the Mayor's office. As he looks into it, he stumbles upon a drug dealing conspiracy gone bad and eventually it all links up with the release of a biological agent and an ensuing epidemic into a very tough Chicago neighborhood. We All Fall Down is best during its descriptions of the epidemic and its impact upon Chic

DVD released in 2011 by Anchor Bay entertainment. Maria Bello and Michael Sheen star as a decent, upper middle class married couple who are slowly but surely growing apart. Their only child is off to college and they are much more interested in their careers than in each other. They do not fight, but they do not care enough to stop the drift. But, tragedy strikes in the form of their son who goes on a shooting rampage at his college and then committing suicide. And then we get to the story itself: What happens to those families who are left behind by these spree shooters? Of course, the denial, the shock and the horror at what their son has done overwhelms the couple. Soon enough, the national media follows them everywhere and camps on their doorstep hoping for a quote or a bit of telling video. Bello and Sheen both shine as they take the viewers through the amazing array of emotions and behaviors that this shell-shocked couple experience. There are no fakey momen

Read by Michael Prichard Duration: 13 hours, 5 minutes Published August 23, 2011 by AudioGo As an avid reader of mysteries, I am sorry to say that I waited so long to check out Nero Wolfe and all of his valuable and useful assistants. If you are not familiar with Nero Wolfe, let me introduce you. Nero Wolfe is an obese genius who solves mysteries but rarely leaves his New York City Brownstone home. His true passions are meticulously prepared meals, orchids and keeping to his routine. Instead of leaving his home and doing the legwork himself, he has several trusted and talented investigators who serve as his eyes and ears. The Nero Wolfe stories are told by Archie Goodwin, Wolfe's number one employee. Goodwin is an interesting character himself. He is Wolfe's employee, but not a toady. He speaks his mind, sometimes too freely. He is flippant, clever, tough and quite the ladies man. When I heard these stories, I realized how much a debt the late Robert B. Parker owes to R

Creepy Change of Pace for Heinlein Read by Tom Weiner Approximately 4 hours Blackstone Audio Multiple Hugo Award winning author Robert A. Heinlein (1907-1988) changes his tone with the novella The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag. This audiobook seems much more like a Philip K. Dick story than a Heinlein story since it features none of the themes that Heinlein is well known for, like space travel, alien contact or time travel. Instead, we get an extra helping of creepy with a surprise ending that truly demonstrates Heinlein’s ability to master a variety of styles. First published under a pseudonym in the now-defunct magazine Unknown in 1942, The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag features Ted and Cynthia Randall, a husband and wife private detective team based in Chicago. They are approached by a fastidious little man with a topcoat and silk gloves named Jonathan Hoag. He has an odd proposition – he offers them a preposterously large retainer to help him

Absolutely Fantastic Original Radio Broadcast by NPR Duration: 3 hours Published 2011 by HighBridge Audio NPR's American Chronicles: World War II is a 3 hour collection of 27 stories broadcast over the radio network from 1982 to 2010 around the topic of World War II. Atomic mushroom cloud over Nagasaki This collection is not designed to introduce the reader to the war or to its causes - it assumes the listener has a basic grasp of the facts. But, what it does do is delve deeply into certain topics that are associated with the war, such as the life of Londoners during the Blitz, the story of a young Japanese man who was in an internment camp, the Doolittle Raid, Bill Millin - the "Mad Piper" who played the bagpipe for his Scottish regiment as they landed at Normandy (because tradition demanded it), women on the home front, artists who may have used their skills to help the Americans to trick the Germans and an interview with one of the pilots of the plane

Ambitious idea but it tends to drag. Read by Tom Weiner. Duration: 20 hours, 16 minutes. Published by Blackstone Audio, Inc. Multiple award winner and science fiction legend Poul Anderson’s The Boat of a Million Years did something that science fiction all-too-rarely does when it was published in 1989 – it got the attention of the mainstream literature critics. The New York Times named it a “ New York Times Notable Book.” Besides mainstream recognition, it was also nominated for multiple science fiction awards as well. The Boat of Million Years follows a group of immortal people through their lives. These are regular people in every respect except that they never age. They were not all born at the same time – some were born earlier (as early as 5,000 years ago), some later but there seems to be no pattern that explains their immortality. Their ancestors are not necessarily long-lived, their descendents do not inherit their immortality. They recover quickly from

Power plays in Afghanistan and in D.C. When I first picked up the book Tribe , I assumed that the title referred to the complicated loyalties of local Afghan politics that create the hard-to-decipher undercurrents that permeate Afghan politics. After all, the cover photo features the silhouette of what looks to be a mujaheddin soldier brandishing an assault rifle. My assumption was wrong on multiple levels. If I were more adept with my weapons identification skills, I would have known right away that the soldier was brandishing an American M16, not the omnipresent AK47 favored in Afghanistan - which is a clue to the direction of the book. While wild and hairy adventures in Afghanistan and Yemen exist in the book, this is not really a book about American adventurism in the Muslim world. Instead, the tribe referred to is the brotherhood of intelligence agents - Russian, Afghan, American who do the secret work of their governments but really have more in common with one another than

A story of a man and his dog and so much more Read by the author, Tom Ryan Duration: 9 and 1/2 hours. Published: 2011 by Harper Audio Unabridged At first glance, Following Atticus is a simple book: A man gets a dog and the dog changes his life. This is true, but this book is so much more than that. Tom Ryan has written a deep, thoughtful book about a man and his dog, but also about a man and his work, fathers and sons, the relationship between man and nature and men and women. In short, this book about a little dog and a lot of hikes in the woods is also a book about life itself. Tom Ryan is the editor of the upstart newspaper the Undertoad in Newburyport, Massachusetts. He has a full life with plenty of friends, a fulfilling job and all of the challenges of a small business. An exceptional elderly dog comes into his life and he realizes he has been missing some things, especially companionship and love. When that dog passes away, Ryan quickly buys another and he and h